Urban Education Reform- Case Study- North Forest Independent Scho

It is also important to note that both Kashmere HS and Washington HS received Academically Unacceptable TEA ratings for the 2010-2011 academic school year, and four other HISD high schoo

Volume 3 Article 4

2013

Urban Education Reform- Case Study: North Forest Independent School District

Jay K Aiyer

Texas Southern University, aiyerj@tsu.edu

Michael O Adams

Texas Southern Univeristy, adams_mo@tsu.edu

Subria Lapps

Texas Southern University, LappsSR@TSU.edu

Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.tsu.edu/thebridge

Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Other Educational Administration and Supervision Commons, and the Urban Education Commons

Recommended Citation

Aiyer, Jay K.; Adams, Michael O.; and Lapps, Subria (2013) "Urban Education Reform- Case Study: North Forest Independent School District," The Bridge: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Legal & Social Policy: Vol 3 , Article 4

Available at: https://digitalscholarship.tsu.edu/thebridge/vol3/iss1/4

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Scholarship @ Texas Southern University It has been accepted for inclusion in The Bridge: Interdisciplinary

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URBAN EDUCATION REFORM

Case Study: North Forest Independent School District By: Jay K Aiyer, Michael O Adams

Edited by: Subria Lapps

Education reformers and advocates have conducted extensive studies and produced significant research around various models of school turnaround and reform As a case study for policy in relation to models for school district turnaround, we will explore Houston’s North Forest Independent School District (NFISD) The purpose of this paper is threefold First, as a study of policy we will retroactively explore the key factors that led to the proposed closure of NFISD Second, using existing strategies of school turnaround, we will explore potential models of reform that may be applied to NFISD Third, we will discuss biases and recommendations concerning a proposed annexation of NFISD by the Houston Independent School District (HISD) and how those biases and recommendations could potentially influence policy and ultimately increase student achievement

North Forest Independent School District Demographic Information: NFISD is located in Harris County and encompasses approximately 33 square miles inside the Houston city limits (North Forest ISD, 2009) As of

2011, the district was comprised of nine schools One high school (North Forest High School the result of the 2008 merger of Forest Brook and Smiley High School), two middle schools (B.C Elmore Middle School, Forest Brook Middle School), five elementary schools (Fonwood Elementary School, A.G Hilliard Elementary School, Lakewood Elementary School, W.E

Rogers Elementary School, Shadydale Elementary School) and an early childhood center (Thurgood Marshall Early Childhood Center) The district’s 2010-2011 budget was more than $49.3 million (North Forest ISD, 2010) and NFISD has more than 1,089 full-time employees; 61.2 percent were teachers (TEA, 2011) For over a decade, student enrollment has continually declined throughout the school district According to the Texas Education Agency (TEA), NFISD served 7,507 students during the 2010-2011 academic year (2011)

During the 2000-2001 school year, 12,487 students were enrolled highlighting a 40 percent decline in enrollment over the last ten years (2011) During the 2010-2011 academic year, NFISD’s students were 66.7 percent African American, 31.1 percent Hispanic, and less than

1 percent White (2011)

Of the 26 major school districts residing within or immediately outside of the Harris County boundary line, NFISD is considered one of the most economically challenged The school district serves both an urban and rural student population with household incomes often well below the poverty line At 99.8 percent, almost all of the students were economically disadvantaged, a data point considerably higher than the state average of 59.2 percent

Additionally, NFISD has had a high percentage of students that were classified as economically disadvantaged and eligible for free or reduced-price meals Eligibility for free

or reduced lunch is a reliable indicator of the socio-economic makeup of the school district

Children from families with incomes between 130 and 185 percent, considered at or below the poverty level, are eligible for free or reduced price meals (TEA, 2010) Table 2 illustrates that during the 2010-2011 academic year, 99.8% of students at North Forest High School were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch (NCES)

STUDENT PERFORMANCE AT NFISD

In 2003, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test was administered throughout Texas school districts to assess student competency in reading, writing,

mathematics, social studies and science The test replaced the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) test (TEA, 2011) In addition to measuring student proficiency, the TAKS test also serves as the primary indicator in determining a district’s and school’s accountability rating which affects a district’s accreditation status Accountability standards include four ratings for districts (Exemplary, Recognized, Academically Acceptable and Academically Unacceptable) and four ratings for schools (Exemplary, Recognized, Acceptable, and Low Performing)

The passage rates for NFISD in 2009 and 2010 were lower than those statewide in all areas

NFISD has continued to see minor improvements in their testing scores; however, drastic change is needed to earn higher accountability ratings In 2009, 29 percent of students in grade 10 met math standards and in 2010 this number grew to 47 percent Although the data represents a significant increase of 18 percent, it also illustrates that still less than half

of the students met the standard This is a constant challenge that NFISD faces The school district was able to improve, but the improvements were not drastic enough to positively impact the district’s accreditation and accountability ratings Passage rates on TAKS reading and mathematics for 2009 and 2010 are provided in Table 3

DISTRICT ACCREDITATION & CLOSURE

In addition to poor TAKS scores, many other factors led to TEA’s ultimate decision to revoke NFISD accreditation and recommend closing the district North Forest has been burdened with fiscal mismanagement, inadequate administration, and governance issues within the school district for decades

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) commissioner, Robert Scott, announced he was officially revoking NFISD’s accreditation status following an unacceptable performance for several years and closing the school district effective July 2012 (R Scott, personal communication, July 8, 2011) Under state law, the accreditation statuses that may be assigned to districts include Accredited, Accredited-Warned, Accredited-Probation and Not Accredited-Revoked

The TEA determined that the North Forest ISD and the North Forest High School have earned a rating of Academically Unacceptable (AU) The district has received this rating for three consecutive years and the high school for six consecutive years It was also determined by TEA that the district has earned a substandard financial accountability rating for the fourth consecutive year The district also earned its fourth consecutive substandard financial rating While the merits of annexation have been called into question by some policymakers, the reality is that the current educational delivery model at NFISD has not produced academic results that are in compliance with state and federal regulations The

proposed solution was the merger of NFISD with HISD NFISD administrators appealed the decision; the TEA has postponed the dissolution giving NFISD an additional year to demonstrate improvements in student performance

MERGER WITH HISD

On July 11, 2011, TEA Commissioner Robert Scott ordered HISD to absorb NFISD schools and begin the process of educating the district’s 7,500 students (2011) At first glance, the merger would appear to greatly benefit the students in the North Forest area HISD is the state’s largest school district with a large and diverse tax base However, an analysis of the HISD schools adjacent to NFISD with similar student populations casts doubt on that assumption A review of the TEA’s Performance Reporting of HISD (TEA, 2011) indicates that six of the eight traditional African-American high schools in HISD are designated as Academically Unacceptable under TEA guidelines Additionally, a majority of middle and elementary schools with large (over 75%) economically disadvantaged student populations are academically unacceptable When comparing North Forest HS to HISD’s Kashmere and Washington High Schools, which are geographically close to North Forest HS and have similar student demographics, North Forest has demonstrated equal or better performance

on the TAKS test It is also important to note that both Kashmere HS and Washington HS received Academically Unacceptable TEA ratings for the 2010-2011 academic school year, and four other HISD high schools with high minority populations were rated Academically Unacceptable as well (TEA, 2011) When examining HISD’s handling of student performance for populations that are like that of NFISD, it is difficult to confidently state that NFISD students will perform significantly better if assimilated into HISD versus remaining in their current district

When taking into account the various changes in HISD, there is significant reason for the community to be concerned That concern should not simply be centered around what the plans are for HISD to handle the annexation of NFISD, but whether or not the students of North Forest ISD will experience more of the same It is also important to note that since NFISD would be in a turnaround phase, it is more likely that student achievement will increase with new programming and innovation as opposed to what would happen if they were in HISD Thus far, HISD has not come forth with any concrete plans to specifically help the NFISD student population that they would inherit It is our recommendation that North Forest ISD does not merge with Houston ISD, but rather implement a strategy to turnaround the school district We believe NFISD should implement a model that directly focuses on a comprehensive Restart Model

TEA ROLE While many state and local leaders have leveled criticism at NFISD, it would be inappropriate to lay the blame entirely upon NFISD’s leadership From 2007 until 2011, TEA conservators were in charge of NFISD During this period, a lack of attention was given

to the actual academic performance of students in the school district While TEA selected the individuals who had complete control over NFISD for several years, their focus was mostly on addressing administrative and fiscal issues While TEA assigned a conservator to oversee continued implementation of school improvement plans for the Academically Unacceptable campuses, there are few examples of successful policies or programs that were implemented during this time period to address the declining student achievement or

to support schools in providing students with a higher quality of education Of the five NFISD schools that were rated Academically Unacceptable for the 2007 school year, the two high schools (Smiley and Forest Brook) were merged into North Forest High School which is

still Unacceptable, Oak Village Middle School was closed, and Hilliard Elementary School remains Academically Unacceptable (TEA, 2007) (TEA, 2011) Currently, only Elmore Middle School holds the rating of Academically Acceptable It can be argued that NFISD should not be held completely responsible for the declines that occurred between 2007 and

2011, especially in the area of academic performance since TEA also remained unsuccessful

in rectifying the aforementioned issues

NFISD RESPONSE NFISD has identified its high school as the primary source of its accreditation woes, and is in the process of implementing a set of reform principles it calls North Forest HS “Project Transformation,” as well as working with noted sociologist Pedro Noguero This initiative focuses on many of the administrative and performance culture issues that have existed at the high school The plan focuses on three broad areas (NFISD, 2012):

Student Achievement and Success

• Clear vision for College & Career Readiness

• Student centered data conferences set with high expectations

• Offering support instruction/intervention with specialist for students showing some improvement but not yet mastering the objectives

Faculty and Staff

• Working with national consultants that have expertise with similar student demographics with emphasis on student success

• Teaming with professional learning communities

• New discipline management system Community and Stakeholders

• Conferences including parents/guardians

• Volunteers While we applaud the basic structure of the plan, a more comprehensive approach that deals with the curriculum and content delivery methods needs to be addressed It is possible that by incorporating all of or some of the reform recommendations outlined below, NFISD can readily create a plan that is both feasible, given the timeframe, and able to yield results Additionally, the district can attempt to partner with outside institutions and organizations to help in the development of a plan that can be effectively implemented for the upcoming school year

Four Strategies For School Turnaround School Improvement Turnaround Models:

The Mass Insight Education described the term turnaround as “a dramatic and comprehensive intervention in a low performing school that: a) produces significant gains

in achievement within two years; and b) readies the school for the longer process of transformation into a high performance organization.” There are currently four strategies:

turnaround, restart, transformation, and school closures The following definitions are directly from the Foundation Strategy Group’s School Turnaround Field Guide (2010):

Turnarounds: Replace the principal and rehire no more than 50 percent of the school’s staff; adopt a new governance structure; provide job-embedded professional development;

offer staff financial and career advancement incentives; implement a research-based,

aligned instructional program; extend learning and teacher planning time; create a community-orientation; and provide operating flexibility

Restarts: Transfer control of, or close and reopen, a school under a school operator that has been selected through a rigorous review process A restart model must enroll, within the grades it serves, any former student who wishes to attend

Transformations: Replace the principal (no requirement for staff replacement); provide job-embedded professional development; implement a rigorous teacher evaluation and reward system; offer financial and career advancement incentives; implement comprehensive instructional reform; extend learning- and teacher-planning time; create a community-orientation; and provide operating flexibility and sustained support

School Closures: Close the school and enroll students in other, higher-achieving schools

RECOMMENDATIONS District wide reform While the most recent TEA Accountability ratings illustrate that not all schools in NFISD are academically unacceptable, the entire district, not just North Forest High School (NFHS), is

in need of reform NFHS was rated Academically Unacceptable for the 2010– 2011 school year Of the remaining 10 schools that make up the district, including one YES Prep charter school and an alternative school, Fonwood Elementary and Shadydale Elementary were Recognized, Lakewood Elementary, YES Prep NF Campus, Forest Brook Middle School, and Elmore Middle School were Academically Acceptable, and Hilliard Elementary and Rogers Elementary were Academically Unacceptable The district’s alternative campus, High Point was not rated and neither was Thurgood Marshall Elementary No school in NFISD received TEA’s highest distinction of Exemplary (2011) With three Unacceptable schools, four Acceptable schools, only two Recognized schools, and no Exemplary schools, every campus

in NFISD could stand to benefit from reforms that would elevate them to higher levels of student success and achievement Looking further into the Gold Performance Acknowledgements, only four schools received acknowledgements for commended performance on the TAKS tests

The successes of the two Recognized elementary schools could certainly serve as initial examples for the other schools in the district Fonwood has experienced positive upward growth trends for student performance in all TAKS subject levels, and Shadydale has rapidly improved each year in all testing areas as well Additionally, strengthening the elementary and middle schools in the district can yield more positive results for students by the time they reach the high school In order to produce students that can be academically competitive in today’s global society, NFISD will need to implement a strategy that will restart and turnaround the district so that all of its schools are equipped to reach at least Recognized status within the next two years, and Exemplary in the long term

NORTH FOREST EARLY COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL While we do not believe that the root causes of NFISD’s academic troubles lie completely with the district’s one high school, it is critical to address the underperformance issues at North Forest HS if the district is to dramatically improve From that vantage point, the best way of doing so would be to model the school after the early college programs that have

shown to be successful for Houston ISD and Aldine ISD (AISD) For several years, HISD has partnered with the Houston Community College System (HCCS) to allow students to take college courses and high school classes simultaneously at one of their five Early College High Schools All five of HISD’s early college schools were Exemplary in 2011 (TEA)

Aldine’s Victory Early College High School opened in 2007, and has received a TEA Exemplary rating every year since the 2007-2008 school year Students at Victory are able

to simultaneously earn their high school diploma and their Associate’s Degree from Lone Star College while receiving support from an intimate community of teachers and administrators (Victory Early College, 2012) Not only do these early college schools offer improved academic support for students, but they also do an exceptional job of graduating students and preparing them for success in college and university

All of the early college high schools in HISD and AISD are relatively small, with none of them serving more than 500 students The small size of the campus allows for students to receive more individualized attention and support from teachers, counselors, and administrators In order for NFISD to effectively replicate an early college high school, the district would need to either split North Forest HS into at least three smaller schools or hire enough staff to keep a low staff to teacher ratio like at the successful schools In considering space and resources, NFISD could establish three separate schools within the North Forest

HS building, which would create the necessary learning communities without significantly increasing costs The political boundaries of NFISD were recently added to the HCCS taxing district, making HCCS the natural partner for an early college model Additionally, the district could explore other ways to partner with other local colleges and universities

Transforming North Forest HS into an early college would require significant restructuring

Prior to the new school year, new administrators would need to be secured that could effectively transition the school into an early college program These administrators would then have the power to retain or hire staff that would be able to establish the foundation for the program Students in grades 10 through 12 would be randomly split into the three schools, and incoming students in grade 9 would be placed as they entered Other than the restructuring of the campuses and staffing changes, North Forest HS could continue to function as a regular high school with students taking courses and engaging in traditional programs and activities

In terms of academics, transforming North Forest HS into an early college campus would have significant impacts on the academic culture of the school Early college high schools are typically structured so that students are held to the highest of academic expectations

Because one of the chief aims of early college high schools is to prepare students to be successful in college, courses are structured so that they rigorously promote learning

NFISD would have to be sure to hire teachers who demonstrate the ability to design engaging and effective lesson plans, that will move students to reach the necessary learning goals in all subject areas An early college high school would also need to be data driven so that student progress is monitored and teachers and administrators are able to meet the ever-changing needs of students Beyond what would occur during the regular school day, students at an early college high school would also benefit from tutoring programs that help support their learning, academic and career related field trips, test prep for college admission exams, and other mechanisms that would better prepare them for the future

Partnership with the Early College High School Initiative Through its partnership with the Early College High School Initiative (ECHSI), HISD has opened five Early College High Schools throughout the district that have resulted in increased student achievement among demographic groups that are similar to those represented in NFISD The Early College High School Initiative has partnered with a number

of organizations to either start or redesign over 240 schools around the county The schools are designed so that low-income youth, first-generation college goers, English language learners, students of color, and other underrepresented populations are able to earn both their high school diploma and an Associate’s degree or up to two years of college credit for free (Early College High School Initiative, 2012) Adopting an early college high school model in NFISD would offer a number of advantages for NFISD students and the community

at large With more rigorous standards and an increased focus on academic achievement and college preparedness, NFISD would undoubtedly experience a significant turnaround (The following information marked by a bullet point, in the ECHSI section of this report, is directly from the ECHSI website)

The Early College High School Initiative Model The ECHSI model is one that is adaptable to fit the needs of the areas that they serve Each early college high school is able to develop a unique vision and learning environment that represents the needs of the students and the interest of the greater community Even in partnering with ECHSI, NFISD would be able to design its early college high school in a manner that best addresses the pressing needs at hand Although there would be significant room for flexibility, there are core characteristics which all ECHSI schools share (2012):

• Students have the opportunity to earn an Associate’s degree or up to two years of transferable college credit while in high school

• Mastery and competence are rewarded with enrollment in college-level courses and the opportunity to earn two years of college credit for free

• The years to a postsecondary degree are compressed

• The middle grades are included in the school, or there is outreach to middle-grade students to promote academic preparation and awareness of the early college high school option

• Schools provide academic and social supports that help students succeed in a challenging course of study

• Learning takes place in small learning environments that demand rigorous, high quality work and provide extensive support

• The physical transition between high school and college is eliminated—and with it the need to apply for college and for financial aid during the last year of high school After graduation many students continue to pursue a credential at the partner college

Early College High School Partnerships

A key benefit of NFISD working with ECHSI to create an early college high school in the district would be the partnership with a postsecondary partner, HCCS As with other early college high schools, HCCS would have an involved role in the design and day-to-day operation of the early college high school Within the HISD early college high schools, HCCS

is involved in a number of roles including (2012):

• School planning processes and governing boards;

• Curriculum committees;

• Syllabus planning activities;

• Co-delivery of courses with high school faculty;

• Provision of tutors;

• Mentors and student teachers; and

• The creation of “scaffolded” learning experiences, such as “bridge” courses to ease the transition to college-level work and mini-seminars for younger students In using HISD as a model, NFISD would not be alone in the process of transiting the school, and instead would

be able to rely on assistance from HCCS as well as ECHSI

Funding Early College High Schools While an early college high school will certainly come with a significant amount of advantages, the cost of operating a program do come into question The early college high school in NFISD would still be a public school, so it would still be able to receive state and local funding However, there would be some additional costs beyond what it would take to operate a traditional public high school A pilot study of budgets suggests that costs for fully implemented early college high school can range from 5 percent to 12 percent more than the cost of a regular public high school; however, another study shows that the return on investment from early college high schools yields significant benefits for students, communities, and states (Webb, 2004) (Palaich, 2006) In order to address added costs of early college high schools, many districts seek funding from various foundations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Ford Foundation, the W.K Kellogg Foundation, and others HISD receives funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as well as other sources to supplement the costs of operating its early college high schools

Success of Early College High Schools Nationally, the early college high school movement has yielded significant results in student achievement over the last several years In 2010, 5,414 students graduated from early college high schools around the country and data shows that they surpassed their peers who attended traditional high schools in a number of ways:

• More than 250 early college high school graduates earned merit-based college scholarships Four earned the prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship, awarded to 1,000 high-achieving, low-income students each year

• 23.3% of graduates earned an associate’s degree or technical certificate

• 77% of graduates went on to some form of postsecondary education: enrolled in four year colleges (52%), two year colleges (23%), and technical programs (2%)

• Of 109 schools reporting data on graduates, more than half (56%) said that students had earned two or more years of college credit

• 80% of early college schools had a graduation rate equal to or higher than their school district (54 out of 68)

• The average graduation rate for early colleges was 84%, compared to 76% for their school district

HISD opened its first early college high school in 2004, and since then there has been a total

of five campuses spread throughout each region in the district These campuses are in areas with similar student demographics as NFISD, and have achieved great success in student test scores as well as college readiness For the 2010-2011 school year, all five early college